Second Lieutenant Hugh St. Pierre Bunbury was born on 29 October 1883 in Peshawar, India (now Pakistan), the youngest of the six sons of Colonel William Reeves Bunbury (1839-1906) and Elizabeth Bunbury née Garrett (1846-1915). His father was a Colonel in the Bengal Staff Corps.
The 1891 census shows him as a scholar, living at 'Landom' South Road, Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, with his parents, three of his siblings: Edwin Garrett Bunbury (1873-1940), Arthur Frank Bunbury (1879-1899) & Charles Thomas Alexander Bunbury (1881-1950), together with a cook, a parlour-maid and a housemaid. In the 1901 census he is recorded as living at 10 Eaton Crescent, Clifton, Bristol, Gloucestershire, with his parents, a cook and a parlour-maid.
He was educated at Clifton College, Clifton, Bristol, where he showed an aptitude for art and won the Gold Star of the Royal Drawing Society. After a spell at Cope's Studio's he was a student at the Royal Academy from 26 July 1904 until July 1909. The 1911 census shows him as an art painter, visiting the home of Captain Arthur Channer RN and his wife May Channer at The Mount, Westham, Hastings, Sussex.
When World War One was declared he was recommended by Lord Roberts, a connection of the family, for a commission and was gazetted to the Reserve of Cavalry, later exchanging into the Royal Field Artillery. He was wounded on 17 August 1916 whilst on observation duty in the front line and died, aged 32 years, on 25 August 1916 at the No.6 British Red Cross Base Hospital, Etaples. He was buried in Plot 1, Row B, Grave 46, in the Étaples Military Cemetery, D940, Étaples, Pas de Calais, France.
Credit for this entry to: Andrew Behan.
